Since a loss via injury to Clay Guida in 2010, Rafael dos Anjos has won five of six fights and entered the UFC lightweight picture. If his jaw has looked unnaturally strong since then, there’s a reason for that.

Dos Anjos (19-6 MMA, 8-4 UFC), who meets Donald Cerrone (20-5-1 MMA, 7-2 UFC) in tonight’s UFC Fight Night 27 co-headliner, survived until the third round during his fight with Guida at UFC 117. However, Guida broke his opponent’s jaw in the first round, and after pressing a forearm against it in the third round, dos Anjos was forced to tap out from the pain.

Since then, though, he’s 5-1 with just a split-decision loss to Gleison Tibau. And he believes he now has an unexpected weapon in his arsenal.

“That break happened when we were openly trading during the first minute of our fight,” dos Anjos told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “He broke my mandible in two parts, but I kept on fighting.

“Nowadays, I have 20 screws and four titanium plates. Since then I broke two hands with my chin: Tibau’s and (Anthony) Njokuani’s.”

After the Njokuani victory, dos Anjos continued his steady move up the division with victories over Mark Bocek and Evan Dunham. Now ranked No. 14 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie.com MMA lightweight rankings, he meets No. 11 Donald Cerrone tonight in a FOX Sports 1-televised bout at Indianapolis’ Bankers Life Fieldhouse.

Were it not for the close loss to Tibau, dos Anjos likely could be in the top five. But that defeat, which came in 2011, he found a silver lining: confirmation of his own durability.

“It was a complicated, tough and competitive fight,” he said. “If it goes to the judges, there’s not much point to complaining. Two of the judges gave him the nod, but I was doing well in that fight – except that toward the end of Round 2, he came very close to finishing the fight.

“I was almost knocked out, but I toughed it out. I felt I won Rounds 1 and 3, but that’s how it goes. I keep training hard. I have better training partners now. I moved to the U.S. I train harder here. Things have improved for me.”

Now based in Newport Beach, Calif., the 28-year-old Brazilian spent his entire camp with trainer Rafael Cordeiro at Kings MMA, where he wrapped his camp with Roberto Correia and Philipe Della Monica. Previously, he also spent some time at the nearby Black House camp. With the move to a new country, world-class training, his veteran status and an opportunity to defeat one of the lightweight division’s most marketable commodities, dos Anjos feels he finally has his big moment.

“It’s my [13th] fight in the UFC and my first co-main-event spot,” he said. “Now is my time. I’m going to win decisively. I want to fight for the belt. It’s my dream, and it’s why I moved to this country. I am uninjured for this fight, as opposed to the previous one where I had various setbacks. I know I’m coming out on top.”

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